Date: Tue, 9 Apr 1996 23:02:03 +0500
From: "Anne Wilson"
Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 04/09/96
AIDS Daily Summary
April 9, 1996
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public
service only. Providing this information does not constitute
endorsement by the CDC, the CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse, or any
other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however,
copies may not be sold, and the CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse should
be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1996,
Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD
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"Sequus Pharmaceuticals Inc.: Sales of Drug for Treating
AIDS-Related Cancer Gain"
"AIDS Prevention Programs for Teenagers"
"Abbott Laboratories"
"Switzerland: Abbott Test for HIV Taken Off Market"
"New Zidovudine Formulation Reduces Viral Resistance"
"HIV-1 Found in Variety of Drug Paraphernalia"
"Experts Call for Increased AIDS Education of African-Americans
and Adolescents"
"Thalidomide Effective for Genital Ulcer in HIV-Positive Women"
"Returning with AIDS: Supporting Rural Emigrants"
"AIDS Update: Stir Up the Treatment Pot"
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"Sequus Pharmaceuticals Inc.: Sales of Drug for Treating
AIDS-Related Cancer Gain"
Wall Street Journal (04/09/96) P. B4
Sequus Pharmaceuticals Inc. announced that sales of Doxil, its
drug used for the treatment of AIDS-related cancer, totaled about
$4.3 million in the first quarter. Doxil is used to treat
Kaposi's sarcoma in cases where other treatments are not
appropriate. The company said that, according to early reports,
patients are requesting the product.
"AIDS Prevention Programs for Teenagers"
Los Angeles Times--Washington Edition (04/09/96) P. A10;
Cummings, Darrel; Ockershauser, Kris
In two letters to the editor published in the Los Angeles
Times, readers respond to an April 1 editorial. Darrel Cummings,
of the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Community Services Center, said the
editorial, which advocated AIDS education for teenagers, did not
mention the special problems faced by gay and bisexual youths.
Cummings says that HIV prevention programs should target homosexual
youths, who are disproportionately affected by HIV. Meanwhile, in
a second letter, Kris Ockershauser of the Unitarian Universalist
Project criticizes the California Independent Business PAC's
opposition to sex education in public schools. Ockershauser lauds
the paper's editorial for bringing attention to the growing AIDS
epidemic among teens and the need for AIDS education.
"Abbott Laboratories"
New York Times (04/09/96) P. D8
Abbott Laboratories announced Monday that its first-quarter
earnings were up 15 percent, partly a result of cutting costs.
The company, which makes pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and
testing kits, began selling its drug Norvir to treat HIV
infection during the quarter. Abbott reported that worldwide
sales of drug and nutrition products rose 8.4 percent, to $1.6
billion.
"Switzerland: Abbott Test for HIV Taken Off Market"
Chicago Tribune (04/08/96) P. 1-8
Switzerland joined four other European countries on Sunday in
taking an AIDS test made by Abbott Laboratories off the market.
The company stopped selling the test on March 25, after four
people with HIV tested negative for the virus. The test was used
by four hospitals and 26 medical laboratories in Switzerland.
Since February, the test had been used to check blood donated to
blood banks. Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and Norway also
withdrew the test, and Britain said 20,000 people will need to be
re-tested.
"New Zidovudine Formulation Reduces Viral Resistance"
Reuters (04/08/96)
A new form of zidovudine can reduce the frequency of viral
resistance and side effects in patients with HIV, and may be more
cost effective than the current form, sold as Retrovir. Allan S.
Hollister, of the University of Colorado at Denver, and colleagues
tested the new formula against the old one in 159 HIV-positive
patients for 10 weeks. The researchers found that viral
resistance to the drug developed in one patient in the group
receiving the new formula, compared to 10 in the standard formula
group. Fewer side effects were also associated with the new
zidovudine formulation.
"HIV-1 Found in Variety of Drug Paraphernalia"
Reuters (04/08/96)
Researchers at the University of Miami examined the various
ways injection drug users can be infected with HIV and found that
the risk is not limited to contaminated needles and syringes.
Other reused paraphernalia and washwater also carry the virus, Syed
M. Shah and colleagues found. They took drug paraphernalia from
Miami drug shooting galleries and tested needles, syringes,
cottons, and drug "cookers" for HIV-1 antibodies and HIV-1 DNA.
All of the paraphernalia tested positive for the virus. Shah
reports in the Journal of AIDS that HIV-1 prevention strategies
among injection drug users may need to be expanded to prevent
contamination of cookers, cottons, and washwater.
"Experts Call for Increased AIDS Education of African-Americans
and Adolescents"
Reuters (04/08/96)
About two-thirds of all AIDS cases reported in Delaware last
year were among African-Americans, according to the state's
public health officials. Similar national trends have also been
reported, according to an article in AIDS Weekly Plus, suggesting
that more education should be focused on the black population.
Kathi Lowthet, a nurse practitioner in Wilmington, said that one
solution may be to recruit more black educators to teach about
the risks of unprotected sex in black communities. Also reported
in the issue is the fact that health officials in West Virginia
are concerned about misinformation about AIDS among young people.
The rate of HIV infection is relatively low among youths there,
however, the officials believe that many of the teens think they
are immune from the epidemic.
"Thalidomide Effective for Genital Ulcer in HIV-Positive Women"
Reuters (04/08/96)
An HIV-positive woman was successfully treated with
thalidomide for a severe recurrent vulvar ulceration, Joep M.A.
Lange and colleagues at the University of Amsterdam reported in the
journal Lancet. Treatment with acyclovir provided temporary
relief, but genital ulceration recurred. Corticosteroid treatment
could not be used because of the risk of HSV-2 relapse and
concurrent intractable oral candidiasis. Thalidomide healed the
ulcer within 10 days, and the patient did not have a recurrence
for the first nine months.
"Returning with AIDS: Supporting Rural Emigrants"
Focus (03/96) Vol. 11, No. 4, P. 1; Shernoff, Michael
Most people living with AIDS in the rural United States are
men who have sex with men, many of whom are returning from urban
lives to their rural families. A survey of therapists who work
with AIDS patients in seven cities reveals that 11 out of 12 have
treated gay men who returned to rural areas near the end of their
lives. Most rural communities have not developed social services
for people with AIDS, however. Among the reasons cited for not
having HIV-related services in these areas are a lack of properly
trained medical specialists, geographical distances and isolation
from sources of social support, and a lack of community support.
Moreover, when confidentiality--a particular concern in rural
areas--is compromised, an individual has an even slimmer chance
of receiving proper health services. Still, AIDS patients in
rural areas do manage to find social services through informal
networks of family, friends, and religious and civic
organizations. These networks need to be strengthened and
formalized. HIV-infected individuals should also give early
consideration to their plans for care as their illness
progresses, and consider their various options.
"AIDS Update: Stir Up the Treatment Pot"
Men's Health (03/96) Vol. 11, No. 2, P. 54
AIDS activists, led by ACT UP, are planning a campaign to
influence AIDS researchers at the National Institutes of Health
to study alternative treatments. These include herbal medicine,
acupuncture, and drugs traditionally used for other purposes.